Nicola Lowe

Nicola Lowe is Professor of Nutritional Sciences and Co-Director of the International Institute of Nutritional Science and Food Safety Studies at the University of Central Lancashire.

After graduating from the University of Liverpool with a PhD in trace mineral metabolism, Nicola spent four years as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of California, Berkeley where she conducted research examining the homeostatic response to dietary zinc depletion.

Nicola's primary research interest is trace mineral metabolism. She is currently Chair of Zinc-Net, a network of international scientists brought together through funding from the European Commission (COST Action), to address issues relating to the role of zinc in human health.

Nicola is also the research director and a trustee for the Abaseen Foundation. This Lancashire based charity is working alongside community members in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in north west Pakistan, to improve education and health care provision.

In 2010, Nicola and her research team won The Times Higher Education’s International Collaboration of the Year award for their work to improve the nutrition and health status of communities in Pakistan and around the area of Blackburn, UK.